Gideon's Game
by RySenkari
Summary: Gideon has broken out of Gravity Falls Maximum Security Prison with the help of some dangerous criminals, and now he's seeking revenge against the Pines family. Thinking it'll be the best way to get to Dipper, he abducts Wendy, and now it's a race against time for Dipper and Mabel to find her and stop Gideon's latest dastardly scheme!


It was another warm summer evening, and two good friends, Dipper Pines and Wendy Corduroy, found themselves sitting on the couch in the living room of the Mystery Shack, watching some late-night thrillers on TV. On this particular evening though, the thrillers weren't quite so thrilling. The old movie that the two had kicked back to watch was full of lame special effects, bad acting, and monsters that would fail to scare a preschooler, let alone a seasoned skeptic and a laconic lumberjack's daughter.

"This movie has to be the least scary scary movie I've ever seen," said Dipper, an indignant glare on his face as he gestured toward the screen.

"Tell me about it," replied Wendy with a bored smirk, rolling her eyes. "You could totally tell that blood was fake and that chick that got stabbed was barely screaming!"

"I know, right?" Dipper snickered, beginning to imitate the half-hearted screaming of the actress. "She was all like 'ahhhh ahhh ahhh...!'"

"No no no, she was more like 'ahhhhh ahhhhhhhhh'!'" Wendy waved her arms to punctuate the effect, prompting Dipper's snickers to turn into full-on laughs. "Seriously, however much they paid her was TOO much."

"Well considering the likely budget of the movie, they probably didn't pay her much at all..." commented Dipper.

"WAY too much," Wendy replied.

The action of the movie suddenly halted, interrupted on the screen by a breaking news bulletin. Dipper and Wendy's attention was drawn to the on-screen reporter, who was standing outside of a large complex of buildings, specifically a concrete wall with a massive hole in it.

"I'm reporting live from Gravity Falls Maximum Security Prison, where there's been a massive prison break!" said the reporter, an urgent look on his face. "Less than an hour ago, a group of prisoners led by disgraced psychic Gideon Gleeful-"

"Whoa," Dipper said, his eyes suddenly going wide as the reporter continued to speak.

"-escaped their cells and made a break for the prison walls! As you can see, this wall's been busted down, and if you'll look behind me, several other walls have also been shattered by Gideon and his group of escapees!"

"...okay, now that's scary," said Dipper, an increasingly troubled look forming on his face.

"What, that little kid?" Wendy replied, smiling casually and reaching over to place a comforting hand on Dipper's shoulder. "Didn't you guys already take him down once before?"

"Yeah, but now he's gonna be REALLY cheesed off at me and Mabel for putting him in jail. ...oh man, I gotta tell Mabel about this, what if he comes after her?"

"Dipper, it's OK... last time it was just you and Mabel against Gideon-"

"And Grunkle Stan, sorta," Dipper interrupted, pointing out how Grunkle Stan had been the one to uncover Gideon's secret network of cameras that allowed him to have his "psychic" knowledge about everyone's secrets, which had enabled the Pines family to bust him in the first place. "Without his help he would've had me and Mabel arrested!"

"Well, if Gideon comes after you two, I'll be right there beside you," said Wendy. "I kinda kept out of it last time and I feel like I ditched out on you guys. And Soos'll be there too, you know that. We've got a united front, dude!"

Wendy's encouraging words and enthusiastic smile weren't enough to ease Dipper's fears, though he couldn't help but smile himself in response to what she'd told him. After all, despite the fact that Wendy had said herself that she was too old for Dipper, he was still head over heels in love with her. He knew that she'd never feel the same way about him that he did about her but he still considered her a dear friend and the most beautiful girl in the world. If Wendy said everything was going to be okay, Dipper had a lot more reason to believe it.

"Well...I'll try to figure out some way to stop Gideon if...when he comes after us. Between me and Mabel, the two of us can figure out something. It'll take time away from figuring out the mystery of the journals, but this is a way more urgent matter."

"Just try not to worry too much about Gideon, okay Dipper?" Wendy's voice took on a slightly concerned tone. "Maybe you oughta just get some rest, I bet your uncle's gonna work everybody real hard tomorrow."

"Yeah..." said Dipper, sighing quietly as he got up from the couch. "Thanks Wendy, just...don't go too far out of your way to help us out with this, okay?"

"It's never out of my way to look out for you guys, you know that. See you tomorrow, Dipper."

"See ya Wendy..." Dipper replied, sighing as he walked over to the stairs, ready to head up to his room and break the news to Mabel about Gideon. He took one last look at Wendy, who'd put her green flannel jacket back on as she got ready to head back home. She gave him a smile, and didn't stop smiling at him until he'd disappeared up the stairs. "_I know you mean well Wendy, and you're really tough, but...Gideon's going to be planning something huge...something dangerous and evil and I don't want to lose you like I almost lost you back in the bunker. …I couldn't stand losing you or Mabel because of that freak."_

O-O-O

The next morning, Grunkle Stan held a staff meeting for the employees of the Mystery Shack. Dipper and Mabel had told him about Gideon, but he'd taken the news in stride, telling them that he'd beaten Gideon once and he'd be more than happy to do it again.

"_Always your usual overconfident self..." _thought Dipper, somewhat annoyed with Grunkle Stan's casual reaction to the very very bad news. _"I know you've got tons of experience with the supernatural and stuff but this is Gideon, our worst enemy...pretty much ever!"_

"Awww, ya worried about Lil' Gideon, bro?" asked Mabel, who was taking the news even better than Grunkle Stan. She wearing a blue sweater depicting a dolphin in a cowboy hat riding a shark, and had a wide smile on her face as Grunkle Stan gave his staff the morning instructions. "Don't worry, he's super predictable. He's probably gonna flirt with me, yell a lot about revenge, try to swipe the journals and pretty much make a complete fool out of himself and we'll have another awesome Mystery Twins adventure to add to our super summer memory banks!"

"Mabel, he just broke out of a maximum security prison and he's got a bunch of dangerous criminals with him!" Dipper whispered back to her, keeping his voice low so he wouldn't get chewed out for interrupting Grunkle Stan's meeting. "Don't you think that's just a little bit troubling?"

"When things give me trouble, I just blow a bubble!" said Mabel, popping several pieces of bubble gum into her mouth and blowing a huge bubble with them. "You should try it sometime!"

"Yeah Dipper, take your sister's advice and chew bubble gum," Wendy replied, leaning on the counter and smirking at Dipper. "Then when Gideon shows up, take out the gum and stick it in his hair."

"Wendy, I'm trying to be- ...wait a minute, that actually might work, he does seem to love his hair an awful lot..."

"See Dipper? Bubble gum solves EVERYTHING," said Mabel, holding up her hand. "High-five!"

Wendy smiled and slapped Mabel a high-five as Dipper tried not to fret about whatever Gideon might be up to.

"And if that brat Lil' Gideon shows his adorable, smiling face in here..." said Grunkle Stan, looking around the room sternly. "I want you all to remember one thing!" 

"Uh, Grunkle Stan, what's that?" Dipper asked curiously, thinking Grunkle Stan might have a solution to the Gideon problem.

"Get back to work and keep making me money!" he replied, before bursting out into laughter. "But seriously, everyone get to work."

Dipper sighed and began to sweep the floor of the showroom while Mabel set to work on her current project, building an enormous, colorful sign to lure in more customers. The two of them didn't know it, though Dipper might've suspected, that Gideon was already planning his terrible revenge...

O-O-O

"And now it's time to plan my terrible revenge!" shouted Gideon, breaking out into high-pitched laughter. He was seated on a chair in his basement, accompanied by eight very large, fierce looking criminals, all of whom had been quite easily manipulated into helping Gideon with his escape, and now, it seemed, would be helping him with his "terrible revenge". "As you all know, I HATE the Pines family..."

"Uh, Lil' Gideon?" asked a tall man with a long red beard and very creepy, empty looking eyes, raising his hand politely.

"Yes, Ghosteyes?" asked Gideon, pointing at the man and gesturing for him to speak.

"I thought you liked Mabel," said Ghosteyes, scratching his beard quizzically. "You couldn't stop talking about her in prison and you've written a bunch of letters to her, and-"

"I love Mabel, yes, but I HATE the Pines family!" shouted Gideon. "Even if Mabel happens to be a part of that family, I still want revenge on her just like the other two! Dipper Pines and Stanford Pines, how I hate them!"

"We hate the Pines family for hurting Lil' Gideon!" shouted all the criminals in unison, shaking their fists in the air. Gideon smiled, gesturing for them to calm down.

"Yes yes, we all hate the Pines family here. But the first goal in our revenge is to capture three journals that they have stolen from me, journals that contain all the secrets of the universe...secrets that should be mine to control! It is my belief that Dipper, the little mystery solver that he is, has the three journals in his possession."

"Well, let's pound him until he gives up the journals!" shouted another of the criminals, a large, bald man with a prominent scar down the side of his face. "I'll bash his face in!"

"As satisfying as that would be," said Gideon with a sadistic smirk, "I have another plan, one that involves a bit of...emotional torment, as it were. You see, there is one thing Dipper loves more than anything else in the word."

"His sister Mabel?"

"His parents?"

"His Grunkle Stan?"

The criminals were on the right track, but Gideon had another idea and shook his head to silence them.

"Yes yes, his family of course, but I was thinking something more along the lines of a girl..."

"His sister Mabel?" repeated the same criminal who'd asked it before.

"NO, NOT MABEL!" shouted Gideon, his voice lined with frustration. "I'm talking about the girl he has a crush on, a tall redheaded girl named Wendy..."

Gideon pulled up a picture of Wendy on his phone and held it up for the criminals to see.

"We are going to snatch THIS girl, and hold her for ransom. In exchange for her safe return, Dipper will have to give me all three journals! And once I have the journals, the secrets of the universe will be all mine!"

"That's a great plan, Lil' Gideon!" shouted another of the criminals, a tall, bald, immensely muscular man.

"Why thank you Killbone," replied Gideon. He surveyed his group of followers, his teeth glistening as his lips curved into a sinister smile. "Today, Dipper Pines and his entire family will know the wrath of Gideon Gleeful! And soon the world will fear me! FEAR LIL' GIDEON!"

"FEAR LIL' GIDEON!" shouted the criminals, standing up and pumping their fists in the air. "FEAR LIL' GIDEON! FEAR LIL' GIDEON!"

The demented young Gideon began to cackle, his laughter filling the room.

O-O-O

That evening, Wendy sat alone behind the counter of the Mystery Shack, bored nearly to tears when Dipper entered the room.

"Finally," Wendy groaned with a loud sigh, smiling as Dipper walked over. "Someone to talk to."

"Aren't you usually off by now?" Dipper asked, looking up at the clock. "It's past eight."

"Mr. Pines's got me working overtime, he says he doesn't want to miss out on any customers and he needs to 'account for Gideon-related disruptions'," said Wendy, REALLY putting emphasis on the quotation marks with her fingers. "I tried to tell him hardly anybody ever shows up past the afternoon, but he insisted."

"Does he realize he has to pay you extra for every hour you work?" asked Dipper, raising his eyebrows at her. Wendy just shrugged.

"He'll realize it when he signs my check at the end of the week," she said with a smirk. "So, you wanna keep me company?"

Dipper immediately got a nervous twitch that Wendy instantly picked up on. She knew Dipper still had feelings for her, she couldn't tell him not to and she was still flattered even when things got awkward between them.

"_I really do wish you were a couple years older Dipper...the universe really sucks sometimes."_

"I...I wish I could Wendy," and Dipper's words couldn't be any more true, "but Grunkle Stan's got me doing some late night errands for him and unlike you, I don't get paid anything..."

"Harsh, man," said Wendy, giving Dipper a sympathetic look. "Hey, first thing tomorrow I'll buy you breakfast, you deserve something for all that work and lord knows Mr. Pines doesn't feed you."

Dipper laughed nervously, giving Wendy a smile.

"Wendy, you don't have to-"

Wendy covered Dipper's mouth with her hand for a moment to shut him up, then pulled it back. Dipper got the message, Wendy was buying him breakfast whether he wanted her to or not.

"I'll see you then," she said. "You like lots of syrup, right?"

"Uh huh..." said Dipper, his face getting increasingly red as he backed out of the room. _"Ugh, Wendy, why do you have to be so amazing? I wonder if I could go back in time and make my parents have me four years sooner...oh man, but then Mabel probably wouldn't be born. ...the universe really sucks sometimes."_

Wendy put her feet up on the counter and leaned back, killing time by playing games on her phone as the minutes ticked by. It was a shock when she heard the door to the Mystery Shack open, and an even bigger shock when she saw who the "customer" was.

"Gideon...?" said Wendy, raising her eyebrow as the demented nine-year-old walked into the room.

"The one and only!" Gideon replied, his lips curved into a smile nearly as wide as his face. "Lil' Gideon, at your service!"

"You're lucky I'm too tired to call the cops right now," said Wendy, still tapping away at her phone while glaring at the unwelcome visitor. "You better just get the hell out of here, I know exactly what you've done to Dipper and Mabel."

"Oh-ho-ho, so my reputation precedes me," Gideon replied proudly, giving a small laugh. "Well, I'll have you know that I'm here to get my revenge on Dipper and Mabel. When I'm through with your little boyfriend Dipper, he'll be begging me to end his suffering. And this time I'm gonna give him a lot more than a nosebleed!"

Wendy didn't care about the 'boyfriend' remark, but Gideon openly taunting that he'd hurt her friend and that he was planning to hurt him even more was more than enough to spring her into action. She clenched her fist, put her phone down, and walked around to the front of the counter.

"You know what? I'm just going to knock you flat," said Wendy, storming over toward Gideon with ill intent. "I don't care if you are a little kid, NO ONE threatens my friends-"

The door opened again, and seven very large, very vicious criminals entered the room behind Gideon. Wendy stopped and a nervous look crossed her face, but she wasn't about to give up without a fight. She immediately turned and went for her axe which she kept stashed under the counter, but as she went to grab it she saw that yet another criminal had somehow slipped into the room and picked it up, holding it tauntingly away from Wendy. He also had her phone.

"Hey, give it back!" shouted Wendy, lunging for the axe in the criminal's hand.

"Oh, that's Quickhands, he's wanted for shoplifting in all fifty states, plus Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands!" said Gideon, gesturing for Killbone to grab Wendy. As Wendy continued to try and get her axe away from Quickhands, she was suddenly grabbed and lifted into the air by Killbone. Despite her strong limbs bestowed upon her by her family's lumberjack genes, she had no chance of escaping the ripped criminal's tight grasp, though she kicked and struggled fiercely as he turned back toward Gideon and the door. "Nice work, Killbone!"

"Let me go you muscle-bound psychopath!" shouted Wendy, trying to break Killbone's hold on her to no avail. "Put me down...I mean it, I'm not gonna ask again!"

"Let's hurry back to my secret lair, gentlemen!" Gideon said, exiting the Mystery Shack followed by his criminal entourage, with Wendy in tow. "Don't worry Wendy, you'll be the special guest on the latest episode of Lil' Gideon's Revenge Hour!"

"What? You jerks are kidnapping me?" shouted Wendy, who began to struggle even more intensely, her long legs kicking wildly as she was placed over Killbone's shoulder. _"Oh I can't BELIEVE this...thanks a lot, Mr. Pines!"_

O-O-O

Meanwhile, Dipper had finally finished all of his errands and collapsed into a heap on the couch in the Mystery Shack's living room. He'd just picked up the remote to enjoy some late night television when he heard a loud, feminine scream coming from outside.

"What the...?!" Dipper shouted, leaping up from the couch with a jolt. "Wendy?"

Dipper ran toward the showroom of the Mystery Shack, looking frantically for Wendy who was nowhere to be found. He heard another loud scream.

"Wendy! Oh no...no no no..." Dipper looked around the room, looking for any sign of her. He then ran out the front door, looking out toward the woods where the screams had come from. He was joined soon by Mabel, who'd also heard the screams and had come out to investigate their source.

"Dipper, what's wrong?" asked Mabel, before smiling slyly. "Did Waddles come out from a dark shadowy corner and scare you again?"

"Mabel, this is serious!" Dipper said, pointing toward the showroom. "Wendy is missing and she never clocked out, somebody came in here and took her and I bet it was Gideon! And I heard screams coming from the forest!"

O-O-O

Gideon let out another loud, girly scream, scratching furiously at his face as a small spider crawled down his forehead.

"Get it off get it off get it off!" Gideon shrieked, prompting Wendy to roll her eyes.

"_I'm being kidnapped by a little boy who's scared of spiders..." _thought Wendy, bowing her head in shame. _"I have no clue why Dipper was so scared of this guy."_

"Hold still Lil' Gideon!" said one of the criminals, carefully flicking the spider off the bridge of Gideon's nose. Several of the criminals surrounded the spider and began stomping at it, kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

"There..." said Ghosteyes, looking over at Gideon. "That spider won't EVER bother you again!"

"Thank you, all of you...now let's hurry, so I can proceed to phase two of my plan!"

"Whatever you're planning, it's gonna fail," said Wendy, glaring over at him. "Dipper and Mabel and their friends are going to stop you and you're gonna end up in jail again."

"Oh, I don't think so..." said Gideon, rubbing his hands together. "You'll see...everyone will see...! This time I am going to beat those stupid Pines twins and their stupid Grunkle Stan and you'll be there to witness it all! You should feel privileged to have a front row seat to the beginning of a new glorious age for the world!"

"...whatever," said Wendy casually, rolling her eyes again. _"Dipper, Mabel, you guys better come find me before this loser bores me to death!"_

O-O-O

Sometime later, Gideon and the criminals had returned to Gideon's basement. Wendy had been placed in a chair and skillfully tied up by the criminals, with ropes around her chest and more ropes pinning her arms tightly to her sides. There were ropes wrapped around Wendy and the back of the chair, and her wrists were crossed and bound tightly together, with another strong rope connecting her bound wrists to the ropes pinning her upper arms to the chair. Her thighs were also bound, as were her ankles, her boots removed from her now bare feet to allow her ankles to be tied to a connecting bar at the front of the chair. Though Wendy was quite strong and also practiced at escaping ropes (from her three older brothers tying her up numerous times when she was younger), these criminals were especially skilled at binding their victims, and the expert job they'd done made it impossible for Wendy to get free. She fumed at not being able to escape the ropes but was for the most part calm, still not afraid of Gideon or his threats.

"Thank you all for doing such a nice job tying our captive up so very tightly," said Gideon, smiling as he went around complimenting his criminal friends on their ropework. "Steelfist, where'd you learn to tie knots like these?"

"Thirty-seven armed robberies in eleven states," said Steelfist proudly, crossing his tattooed arms in front of his chest. "Ain't nobody escaped these ropes yet."

"And yet our little guest here is still trying," said Gideon, walking over to Wendy who was still squirming in her chair. "What makes you think you can get out of these ropes when nobody else has?"

"Dipper and Mabel do the impossible all the time," said Wendy, allowing herself a smile as she continued to fight her bonds. "And it's FAR from impossible to take a little squirt like you down."

"I'll have you know that I am the great Gideon Gleeful, the most brilliant, powerful, gifted genius in the entire world!"

"You're a little coward is what you are," scoffed Wendy. "You wouldn't have been able to grab me without your big prison buddies backing you up. Face it Gideon, without them you're nothing."

"It's called being smart! Why do all the dirty work myself when I can get my dear, sweet friends, who I have worked countless hours helping to turn their lives around in prison, to do my bidding for me?"

"Smart? You really think you're smart?" said Wendy, starting to laugh as she began taunting him. "Every single plan you've ever come up with, Dipper and Mabel have foiled. Actually, you know what? Their uncle's the one who's foiled a lot of your plans, and he spends most of his time scratching his ass and failing to con stupid tourists out of their money. If HE'S got you beat mentally, I don't know what makes you think you've got any chance to outwit Dipper and Mabel, two of the smartest kids I've ever known. They can beat you any day of the week and no matter what insane, moronic, totally dumb scheme you think can beat them with, you're gonna end up getting knocked on your ass again because- thmm gmt...mmphh? Mmphmm! MMMRGH!"

Wendy had been cut off mid-taunt by one of the criminals sealing up her lips with a strip of duct tape, and she continued to yell and grunt as he smoothed it over her mouth with his rough hand.

"Ugh, thank you, she was REALLY starting to get on my nerves with all that blathering on!" shouted Gideon, giving a satisfied look as the now gagged Wendy's taunts were rendered completely unintelligible as she flexed her lips angrily under the tape. "Now that I have a silent audience, I am going to tell you what's going to happen. You are going to submit to my will just like everyone else will once I have the three journals in my possession! I'm going to trade you to Dipper for the journals and there's nothing you can do to stop me! Go on, tell Lil' Gideon what you're gonna do. Go on!"

Wendy went silent, not giving Gideon the satisfaction of trying to continue the conversation with her mouth taped shut. She just gave him the fiercest glare she knew how to muster.

"_Gideon, you can do what you want but you're still gonna lose. Don't say I didn't warn you."_

"Uh, Lil' Gideon, I don't think she's submitting," said Quickhands, scratching his head.

"You uh...you want us to start hitting her or something? Because I don't hit girls...not even for you Lil' Gideon."

Several of the criminals murmured in agreement, prompting Wendy to roll her eyes at them.

"_Yeah, cuz you're scared to," _Wendy thought to herself, thinking she could take on any one of these guys in a fair fight no matter how many muscles or tattoos or scars they had.

"Oh no, I have a much more sinister torture in mind..." said Gideon, walking menacingly toward Wendy with a smirk on his face, his fingers twiddling in front of him. "Oh yes...it is the most dastardly, malevolent, vicious torture of them all!"

"_What?" _thought Wendy, not looking frightened in the least. _"I have to listen to another minute of your stupid voice?"_

"Tickle torture!" said Gideon with a laugh. "I HATE being tickled, hate hate HATE it...! And surely our lovely Miss Corduroy here hates it just as much as I do..."

A brief nervous look crossed Wendy's face and she instinctively pulled back her feet as much as she could...which, being tied to the chair, wasn't very far.

"_Oh dude, no, I'm really ticklish, especially on my feet...!_" thought Wendy. Tickle torture was still lame, but she knew she wasn't going to enjoy this. _"Don't you dare!"_

Wendy tried not to show any reaction, but the beads of sweat trickling down her face and her brief angry glare gave her away. Gideon knelt down and positioned his fingers near Wendy's feet.

"Ready or not, here comes the tickle monster!" shouted Gideon gleefully, before unleashing a torrent of tickles on Wendy's helpless soles. She could only stifle her laughter for a couple of seconds before releasing a stream of loud squeals and screams, interspersed between muffled laughter that filled the entire room.

"MMMMMHMHMHMHMHMHMHAAAMMHMHMHPHAAAMAMMPHHH!" Wendy cried out, shaking her head and trying to pull her feet away, or curl her toes, or do anything to get Gideon to stop mercilessly tickling her feet. "STTTMMMHMMHMHMMHMPHHHHH HHMHMHMHMHMIT!"

"Lil' Gideon, your tickling technique is beyond all compare!" said one of the criminals, looking on in awe as Gideon continued his tickle torture of the helpless Wendy.

"Yeah, she's really laughin' hard!" shouted another.

"HMHMHMHMHMHMHMHMHPHHHRRRRMMMHMHPHMMMMMPHH!" snorted Wendy, sucking in desperate breaths of air through her nose between floods of laughter. Gideon's relentless tickle attack didn't let up, and he didn't give her even a moment to breathe. "HMHMHMHMHMHMHMMHMHMHMHMMMMMMMPHHH!"

"Don't even try begging, Wendy..." said Gideon, his fingers now dancing up and down Wendy's toes as they wiggled with increasing speed, trying to somehow smack his little fingers away but being unable to do so. "Resistance is absolutely futile!"

"Resistance is futile!" the criminals all shouted, cheering Lil' Gideon on.

Wendy thrashed furiously in her chair as the minutes went on, the tickling unceasing. While this was somewhat better than being given a beating, she was definitely still suffering, having never been tickled this much before in her entire life. She knew Gideon was trying to break her down and she refused to break for him...she would hold out hope that Dipper and Mabel would somehow find her.

"_I don't care how much you tickle me you little brat...I will never ever EVER stop trying to get loose! And sooner or later you're gonna get your butt kicked just like you always do!"_

O-O-O

Back at the Mystery Shack, Dipper was furiously racking his brain, trying to figure out what could have happened to Wendy. He and Mabel searched the forest for signs of Wendy or Gideon but had turned up nothing, and he'd returned to the Shack a nervous mess, his pine tree hat crumpled up in his hands.

"Dipper, I'm sure Wendy'll be okay...remember that time we went into the bunker? She got all scratched up and she had to fight that shapeshifter guy, but-"

"But she nearly _died_, Mabel, remember?" said Dipper, his brow furrowed with worry. "And this isn't just Gideon we're talking about, he's got a gang of big mean men with him-"

"Wendy's way tougher than any of those guys!" Mabel replied, waving her arms around in admiration. "She's got those awesome lumberjack genes, she can climb up trees and whack them with her axe and-"

"Mabel just stop it! Wendy's in trouble and it's all my fault...Gideon...he knows I'm in love with her! He must've taken her to get revenge on me! If Wendy could hear all those things I've been muttering then Gideon must have seen them with those dumb cameras of his, he knew EXACTLY how to get to me, by going after the thing I love most!"

"Well if he wanted to do that he would've come after me," said Mabel, giving a laugh and slapping her brother on the shoulder. "But wait...he still likes me sorta...hmmm..."

"It's all my fault...I'm so stupid..." Dipper walked over to the couch and sat down, burying his head in his hands. He was on the verge of tears. To think that his innocent little crush had put his friend Wendy in danger, at the hands of his worst enemy... he'd thought no harm would come of liking her but now Wendy was in trouble, she might DIE because of his feelings for her. "I wish I'd never met Wendy!"

"Dipper! You can't say that, you and Wendy are such good friends!" Mabel said, sitting down next to Dipper with a look of deep concern. "You can't help how you feel and when you try you get all these weird feelings...you know, like when you're trying to hold in a huge sneeze? You can't hold that thing in, you gotta let that sucker OUT!"

But Mabel's optimistic advice wasn't helping, and to make matters worse, Grunkle Stan had just entered the room.

"And YOU!" Dipper shouted, standing up from the couch and angrily pointing at Grunkle Stan. "If it hadn't been for you, I could've stayed with Wendy tonight and kept her safe!"

"Wait, what happened to Wendy?" asked Grunkle Stan, looking back and forth before coming to a sudden realization. "Holy crap, she never clocked out! I'm losing a lot of money here!"

"Grunkle Stan, something really bad's happened!" said Mabel, walking over to Grunkle Stan and putting a hand on his to stop him from rushing to the time clock. "We think Gideon's kidnapped Wendy!"

"Huh?" said Grunkle Stan, looking over at Dipper. "Is that why you're so cheesed off? Kid, if that's the case and he got Wendy, what makes you think you'd have done any better? I mean look at these scrawny arms! I bet I could kidnap you right now!"

Grunkle Stan laughed, picking up Dipper and easily carrying him around the room as Dipper tried to wrestle out of his grasp.

"Put me down Grunkle Stan, I'm serious...! Wendy's in trouble...stop messing around! Stop it...!"

"Grunkle Stan...!" Mabel shouted, chasing him around as he carried Dipper in circles, undeterred by any attempts Dipper was making to get away from him. "We need your help!"

Finally, Grunkle Stan set Dipper on the couch and put his hands on his hips, staring down gruffly as Dipper glared at him.

"Kid, what makes you think Wendy got kidnapped?"

"We heard a loud scream and she was gone," said Dipper. 

"The woods are scary, people scream all the time, especially at night. I mean, you scream like a little girl whenever you find a bug on you or something."

"It is kinda true," said Mabel with a giggle. "But wait, Wendy wouldn't leave without clocking out. She is kinda lazy but she's an honest person."

"Yeah, a lot more honest than you," Dipper mumbled under his breath.

"Well maybe she just forgot," said Grunkle Stan, "in which case I'll dock it from her pay with thirty percent interest compounded by the second. Anyway, why would Gideon kidnap Wendy if he wanted to get to you two? The way I see it, it'd be a lot more easier just to come after the two of you. Like I said, scrawny arms and everything. Now if you two don't have anything else to tell me, I'm headin' to bed. If you find Wendy, tell her she owes me for two hours pay! ...with interest!"

Grunkle Stan headed up the stairs, leaving Dipper and Mabel alone in the living room.

"Well Mabel, if we want to save Wendy, we're going to have to do it ourselves, just like all the other times we've had to do this kind of thing by ourselves."

"Don't worry Dipper, the Mystery Twins never lose!" said Mabel, hugging Dipper tightly. He tried to squirm away from her, but she wasn't letting him go, she knew he needed her optimism now more than ever. "I promise Dipper...I'm not gonna stop until we find Wendy."

"...thanks, Mabel." Dipper replied, returning his sister's hug. "I just wish I knew where to start looking..."

O-O-O

After two hours of constant tickling, Wendy was exhausted. She was taking quick breaths through her nose as sweat and tears ran down her face. Her entire body hurt from struggling and laughing so much, her throat was sore, and her feet tingled up and down, somewhat numb from the constant touch of Gideon's furious fingers. But even though she was in a state of severe discomfort, Wendy wasn't even close to giving in to any of Gideon's demands. She still wasn't afraid and she still wasn't ready to give up hope. As soon as she could gather the strength to raise her head, she did so, giving him a very fierce glare.

"So Wendy," asked Gideon, walking over to her and cupping her chin roughly in his hand. "Are you broken yet?"

"Gmt bmnt," Wendy said, narrowing her eyes.

"I'm pretty sure she's still not broken," said Ghosteyes, pointing at Wendy.

"I know that," said Gideon, clenching his fists as he walked over to a nearby desk, on which a tripod and camera were placed. "No matter...we're going to shoot the ransom video now. I'm going to get my journals...!"

Gideon placed the tripod across from Wendy and set up the camera, pointing it right at her face. Wendy continued to glare and gave a few weak struggles, her fists clenched tightly behind the chair.

"Once I have those journals in my grasp, nothing can stop me... but just to make sure...once Dipper hands them over, well..." Gideon smiled devilishly, looking right into Wendy's eyes. "I'm going to kill him."

"WHMMT?" Wendy shouted, immediately getting a second wind, her fists clenching white knuckle tight as her eyes narrowed into fierce slits. "NMMMPGGGH!"

Wendy began to thrash and struggle with a fury Gideon hadn't seen since the criminals had first tied her to the chair. She bucked wildly against her restraints, straining fiercely against the ropes, her hands working furiously to the point of almost immediate bruising. She swore and shouted and screamed, the chair rocking as she fought against it, giving all of her strength to try and break free before Gideon could lure Dipper into a trap.

"YMMRR NMMT HMMRTING DMMPER!" Wendy screamed, her face contorted into an expression of rage. "YMM HMMR MM? LMMVE DMMPRR MLMNE! YMM BMMSTMRD!"

"Ohohoho, someone's not too happy with lil' ol' me," said Gideon, laughing as he prepared to turn on the camera. "But all that anger's so unfitting for a ransom video, you're supposed to be all frightened and begging Dipper to come to the rescue!"

"GMM TMM HMMLL YMM DMMNTMED LMMTLE FMREAMK!" shrieked Wendy, her feet and arms straining mightily against the tight ropes holding them. "WHMN MM GMT MMT MMF THMS CHMMR...!"

Wendy had had it with Gideon's games. Being kidnapped was one thing, it was a blow to her pride to be sure, but she could wait to be rescued if she had to. Being traded for Dipper's journals was worse, but they could always be gotten back, just like last time. But being used as a pawn to lure Dipper to his death... the boy who'd made her whole summer the best summer of her life, the sweet, smart, fun kid who'd helped her get through all the boring moments she'd had to endure... she would NEVER let anyone, let alone this evil manipulative monster, use her to hurt someone she cared about. She'd fight with everything she had to save him no matter what.

"Now Wendy, this is for Dipper, so why not act nice and scared for the camera?" Gideon smirked wickedly now, dangling the prospect of more torture over Wendy's head. "You don't want another two hour tickling session, do ya?"

"MHMPFHHHH! MMMGRMHHH!" Wendy shouted furiously through her gag, clenching one of her fists while angrily extending a middle finger from the other. _"Gideon, if you harm even one hair on Dipper's head, I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"_

Wendy's frenetic struggling began to worry Gideon, who thought that his captive's bonds might be starting to loosen despite Steelfist's assurances that they would hold. He walked around behind the chair, where he saw Wendy's extended middle finger.

"Um, what's this she's doing with her hand?" asked Gideon, naïve as to what exactly this gesture meant. One of the criminals looked at it and his voice took on a bit of a nervous tone.

"It's the uh, Hawaiian good luck sign, Lil' Gideon..." he said with a nervous smile. Gideon raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical.

"I highly doubt that considering that she's furious with me!" shouted Gideon, storming around to the front of the chair and pulling the tape away from Wendy's mouth, leaving one end of it dangling from her face. "What does that middle finger mean?"

"It means fuck you you psychotic little shit!" Wendy shouted. Gideon recoiled and let out a shriek, the foul language burning his sensitive ears.

"Such...such vulgarity!" Gideon shrieked, covering his ears.

"What, you didn't hear those words in prison?" said Wendy, laughing at Gideon as he seemed to have painful reactions to her swearing. "Aww, are the widdle cuss words hurting baby's widdle ears? Well fuck you right in the ass, Lil' Gideon, or should I say little fucking bitch Gideon, and speaking of getting fucked in the ass, I wonder if that's how you got all these big strong guys to follow you because they sure as shit wouldn't- mmmrrrffffmmmnnn!"

Gideon cut Wendy off by sticking the tape back tightly over her lips, pushing his hand against her mouth a few times to make sure it was securely back on.

"That DOES it!" shouted Gideon, turning on the camera and beginning to speak. "Dipper, this is Gideon! I have your girlfriend Wendy and I'm gonna make her SUFFER until you show up in the middle of Gravity Falls Lake with my journals! All three of 'em! And if you don't, I'm gonna tickle Wendy until she BURSTS!"

"Dmmmper, dmmnt lmmmstmn tmm hmm!" shouted Wendy, trying to convey a message to Dipper despite her lips being tightly sealed up. "Mmts mm trmmap, hmms gmmna kmmll ymm! DMMPRR!"

Gideon stopped the recording and sent a file of it to Dipper's phone, then turned to Wendy with a malevolent scowl.

"You're going to pay for your insolence..." he said, leaning up toward her.

"Dmm yrr wmrst..." she replied, glaring fiercely back at him.

"...I WILL!" shouted Gideon, grabbing a feather off the desk and turning menacingly back toward Wendy. "Prepare to face the ultimate tickle torture...!"

"Lil' Gideon, that's an awfully big feather..." said Killbone, nervously eyeing it up and down. "Are you...sure she can handle it? We need her alive, remember?"

"I don't care anymore!" said Gideon, kneeling down and sliding the feather toward Wendy's sweating, shaking soles. "Kootchie...kootchie...coo!"

The tip of the feather touched Wendy's feet. She leaned back her head and let out a half-laugh, half-scream.

"MMMMMMMMMMHHMMMMMMMMMMMHMMMMMMMMM!"

O-O-O

Dipper's head slammed against his desk over and over again. He'd tried desperately to think of all the places Gideon might be hiding Wendy, but his mind was drawing a blank.

"Hey...what about Gideon's house?" asked Mabel, sipping from a juice box between sentences. "I mean, isn't that the place he's most familiar with?"

"And the most OBVIOUS place to look," Dipper replied, shaking his head. "That'd be the first place the cops would look too, I imagine."

"Yeah, but the cops in this town..." Mabel rolled her eyes, her voice trailing off. Dipper let out a sigh. Mabel had a point, but he couldn't imagine Gideon would be hiding Wendy somewhere so obvious. As he tried to come up with another possible idea, his phone began to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket and turned it on. On the screen was a video message. 

"From...Lil' Gideon?!" Dipper exclaimed, quickly pressing the button as the phone showed Gideon with a bound and gagged Wendy. "WENDY!"

"_Dipper, this is Gideon! I have your girlfriend Wendy and I'm gonna make her SUFFER-" _

Dipper listened to the rest of the message, including Wendy's muffled warning to him just before the video was cut off.

"Gideon...he's got her...he's...he's hurting her!" Dipper shouted, clenching the phone so tightly in his hand that Mabel thought he might break it. "And...he thinks she's my girlfriend for some reason...I mean I wish she was but we're not-"

"Focus Dipper, did you see any clues in the video?" Mabel asked, grabbing the phone out of Dipper's hand.

"Well yeah, they were in a creepy basement, the same one from Gideon's old videos-"

"That he films from his house!" Dipper and Mabel both shouted in unison, before Dipper put his head in his hands and collapsed to his knees.

"Oh MAN!" Dipper cried, rocking softly back and forth. "You were right Mabel, he's got her at his house, the most obvious place and I was so stupid not to even entertain the idea...!"

"Yeah, it's usually the most obvious place, uh doi...!" Mabel said, sticking out her tongue and twirling her finger around and around. "Well come on Dipper, aren't we going to stop him? I mean you're not thinking about actually giving him the journals are you?"

"No way, no way am I giving ANYTHING to that little creep!" Dipper shouted, standing up with a determined look on his face. "Come on Mabel...we'll go to his house and think of something..."

"Waaaaaaaaaait a minute...maybe we should just call the cops," said Mabel, a slightly worried look on her face. "I mean these ARE some really bad criminals we're talking about here."

"No Mabel, if we call the cops with their sirens and loud screeching tires and everything, Gideon will know we called them and he might hurt Wendy. We gotta show up by ourselves. I don't know how we're going to get her out of there but I'll think of something on the way."

Mabel nodded and followed Dipper down the stairs... she was still nervous, but she and Dipper had beaten Gideon plenty of times before. She had to know that this time would be different...the two of them could only hope that whatever Dipper came up with, it would work.

For Wendy's sake.

O-O-O

Wendy had her head bowed as Gideon's tickling let up after a solid half hour with the feather. By now she was completely drenched in sweat and her eyes were red and swollen from tears, not from fear or any kind of negative emotion but from just the sheer feeling of having her feet tickled so fiercely that she could barely stay conscious at times.

"Mmmph...mpf...mmhm...mmnh..." Wendy let out quiet grunts beneath the tape as Gideon stood up again and looked at her.

"Now are you ready to be a helpless little damsel and not a nasty little spoilsport?"

Wendy just looked up at Gideon with a cold stare that sent a chill through his spine. She had a look on her face that could only be described as homicidal.

"Kmss...mmh...mmsss..." Wendy emoted through her gag, snorting out hot breath with every word.

"You know, I don't get it," said Gideon, a puzzled look on his face as he backed off from Wendy. "I know I said Dipper was your boyfriend but that can't be true. He's short and scrawny, you're big and tall and what, eighteen?"

"_Fifteen," _thought Wendy, _"and still too old for Dipper...but not too old to see him as an amazing friend. Maybe someday...maybe something else...I don't think it'll ever happen but I wouldn't mind if it did. No matter what, I won't let Gideon hurt you, Dipper. I won't ever let him hurt you."_

"If you can tell me without any more cussin', I'll take the tape off your mouth..." said Gideon, who got only another glare from Wendy in reply. 

"I don't think you oughta, she's gonna swear at you again, worse this time!" said Killbone, trembling a bit as he got ready to protect Gideon from another round of Wendy's foul mouth.

"Well, maybe curiosity killed the cat but I'm givin' her a chance to speak her mind," said Gideon, ripping the tape harshly off of Wendy's mouth. Wendy winced in pain as the sticky tape was torn from her face. "Well?"

"He's my best friend," she said with complete sincerity. "And I will NEVER let you hurt him!"

"What can you possibly do, all tied up in that chair?" said Gideon, pacing in front of Wendy, his voice taunting her as she spoke. "I can tickle torture you any time I want! I can tell you can't take any more of it!"

"I can take all the stupid tickle torture you can dish out!" Wendy snapped, once again resuming her struggles. Gideon stormed over to the chair and climbed up into Wendy's lap, standing on her thighs as she furiously tried to push him off of her. "Get off me! I'm not afraid of you!"

"You should be, because I'm going to kill Dipper and I'm gonna make you watch!" Gideon hissed, pointing at Wendy's face. "I'll make you beg me to let him live!"

"Get OFF of me! What the hell is WRONG with you?" shouted Wendy, her teeth clenched in rage. "I know why this all started, because you wouldn't take no for an answer from Mabel! You say you love her but you don't know what the hell love even is! You know who does? Dipper does, because I told him it wouldn't work between us and he respected me enough to accept it! He respected me enough to be my friend, not "just" friends but my BEST friend, the best friend I've ever had! Him and his sister both are smarter and cooler and BETTER than you'll EVER be, you sick, twisted, sadistic, psychotic little FREAK!"

Gideon didn't put the tape back on Wendy's mouth. Instead, he slapped her right in the face, as hard as he could with his open palm. While the slap from Gideon's soft, tiny little hand barely registered as more than a split-second sting to Wendy, just the fact that he would actually strike her filled her with even more rage and she did the only thing she could think of doing to Gideon at this point. She reared back and spat right in his eye, with such force that it sent him falling off of her lap and onto the floor. He screamed, another loud, girlish scream that caused most of the criminals to rush to his aid, while another of them tore a fresh strip of duct tape off the roll and got behind Wendy.

"Serves you right you little fu-kmmmmphhh!" Wendy growled, shaking her head to avoid having the tape smoothed over her lips as Gideon lay on the ground, reeling from having a massive loogie hocked right in his eye.

"I want her AND Dipper dead...!" shouted Gideon, pointing his finger at Wendy. "I don't know who I'm gonna kill first but I'm killing them both and the last one to die is gonna watch! I can't believe she would...would SPIT in my face like that!"

"Don't worry Lil' Gideon, we're gonna make them all pay, just like you told us to..." said Ghosteyes, tenderly wiping Wendy's spit off of Gideon's face.

"Yes...yes you will..." Gideon snarled.

O-O-O

Dipper and Mabel arrived at Gideon's house just minutes after Wendy had spit in Gideon's face. The two of them knew they were walking into a serious situation, and the only plan Dipper could come up with was...

"Okay Mabel, you need to create a distraction while I slip in through a window and find Wendy," said Dipper, looking nervously at his sister. "Whatever you do...don't get yourself caught...I feel bad enough getting Wendy captured as it is but I'm terrible at creating distractions..."

"You sure are, bro!" Mabel said, playfully elbowing her brother. "Don't worry, I'm super awesome at doing stuff."

"Riiiight..." Dipper said nervously, taking one of Mabel's hands in both of his own. "I'm serious though...Mabel..."

"We both love Wendy! In two different ways obviously, but I feel just as strong about saving her as you do! I'm not gonna mess this up, I totally promise!"

Dipper had to take Mabel's word for it, and reluctantly crept around to the side of the house, watching for any sign of Gideon or his minions as he went. While Dipper was sneaking off to look for a way in, Mabel was making a phone call...

"Yeah, uh huh, you guys need to get here quick because some serious stuff is going down! Mabel out!"

O-O-O

Wendy was still trying to catch her breath as Gideon approached again, feather in hand. She squirmed her feet back but she knew what was coming next...though as she mentally prepared for another round of tickling, she'd noticed that the ropes around her wrists were starting to loosen up, either from all the sweat that had coated them during her struggles, or maybe blood from a wound she'd opened up straining against the harsh ropes. Either way, she knew an opening when she saw one.

"_Impossible is about to become possible..." _thought Wendy, starting to struggle a bit more deliberately now even as Gideon knelt down to resume the tickling.

"This time I'm gonna make you really suffer!" Gideon declared.

A faint knocking sound emanated through the room. Someone was knocking at the door upstairs.

"Someone's knocking, Lil' Gideon..." said Steelfist.

"I know that!" Gideon snapped, growling. "Just ignore it!"

There was another knock, followed by the sound of Gideon's phone ringing. Gideon clenched his teeth and let the phone ring a few times but after the sixth ring, he angrily picked it up.

"Who is this?" Gideon yelled.

"It's me, Dipper!" replied Mabel in a fairly good imitation of her brother's voice. "And I'm here to save Wendy so you better look out!"

"What? I told you to bring the journals, you idiot!"

"I'm not giving you anything! I'm gonna save Wendy!"

Gideon hung up the phone, seething with rage for a moment...then he smiled and began to laugh maniacally.

"This is perfect! Dipper's walking right into my hands like the fool that he is!"

"But uh, what about the journals, Lil' Gideon?" asked Ghosteyes. "I mean, if we kill Dipper now, how are we gonna-"

"We subdue him and torture Wendy in front of him until he coughs up their location..."

"_Fat chance..." _thought Wendy, feeling the ropes continue to loosen up as she struggled. _"Come on...I just need a few more minutes..."_

"Now go!" shouted Gideon, pointing at the door. "All of you, get up there and catch Dipper!"

"Yes, Lil' Gideon!" the criminals said in unison, dutifully heading up to stop the intruder.

"_No!" _thought Wendy, fighting the ropes more and more. _"Dipper, I know you really care about me but coming in the front door?"_

Suddenly, Wendy could hear a window above her head creaking slightly. It was the window in the upper part of the back wall, just large enough for a child to slip through...Dipper was at the window, poking his head in at Wendy. He smiled at her, making the familiar 'lip-zipping' motion with his hand that Wendy had taught him.

"_Uh, I know your lips are kinda already zipped but..." _Dipper thought, blushing nervously as he saw Wendy look up at him, her lips curving into a smile under the tape.

"_Hurry Dipper, while he's all by himself...!"_

Gideon turned to face Wendy and saw her looking up at Dipper. He let out a gasp.

"But...!" was all Gideon had time to say before Dipper dropped down through the window and ran toward him. "Wait a minute!"

Dipper struck Gideon in the face with a fierce punch that sent him reeling to the ground, a trickle of blood coming out of his nose.

"That was for Wendy!" Dipper shouted, immediately tackling the already fallen Gideon and landing several fierce blows to his face and chest. "And this is for all the times you've messed with us!"

"Aaaaaahhhh!" Gideon screamed, barely able to defend himself from Dipper's fierce blows. Dipper had gotten significantly better since the last time they'd fought. _"Oh, why didn't I lift weights in prison instead of ordering my minions to lift them for me?!"_

"_Oh man..." _thought Wendy, unable to stop herself from smiling as she watched Dipper give Gideon the beating he so richly deserved. _"Dipper's really kicking his butt!"_

Dipper stopped the beating but stayed on top of Gideon, putting his fist up in the air and preparing to strike him again.

"Say you're sorry!" Dipper commanded.

"Never!" replied Gideon defiantly, earning another punch to the face. "Owwwww!"

"Say it!" shouted Dipper again, once more raising his fist.

"Heeeeeeeeeeeelp meeeeee!" Gideon cried out loudly. "Steelfist, Killbone, Ghosteyes, anybody, heeeeeeeeeeeelp!"

Dipper punched Gideon again, this time in the stomach. Gideon gasped and coughed, clearly in a lot of pain. Dipper looked at Wendy, he knew Wendy might not want to see him being so vicious and rough, especially toward someone who clearly couldn't fight back. Wendy just shrugged, her smirk clearly visible through the tape.

"_Go ahead," _she thought, just enjoying the show. _"Just wish I had some popcorn...or that I could even eat popcorn with my mouth taped shut."_

Dipper reared back and got ready to punch Gideon again, only for Gideon to put up his hands, a pleading expression on his face.

"Wait...wait! I'm sorry...I'm sorry! Please, stop hitting me! I'll do anything...ANYTHING!"

"Wow, really?" Dipper asked, lowering his fist but still quite angry with Gideon and still keeping him pinned. "That easy? I mean I know I was hitting you pretty hard but-"

"I was wrong...I was wrong to kidnap Wendy, I was wrong to try and take your journals! I was wrong about everything! I don't wanna be in prison, I don't wanna be evil, I don't wanna get my butt kicked, just please stop hitting me!"

Dipper knew there was no way Gideon was actually turning over a new leaf or even sincere about his apologies. He knew the only reason Gideon was begging and pleading was that he didn't want to get hit again. But still, even a fake apology was better than nothing, and Gideon was clearly beaten.

"Fine," said Dipper, rolling his eyes. "But you're going right back to prison."

Dipper stood up, getting his weight off of Gideon and starting to turn around. As soon as Gideon could freely move his arms, he reached down into his pocket and pulled out a stun gun. Wendy saw this and her eyes grew wide and frantic.

"DMMPER, BMMHHMND YMM!"

Dipper quickly turned but it was too late. Gideon zapped him in the stomach, sending 100,000 volts of electricity through Dipper's body. Dipper collapsed to the ground, his limbs unresponsive as Gideon stood over him.

"Who's sorry NOW, Pines?" Gideon shouted, zapping Dipper again. Dipper let out a loud, painful scream, his entire body going limp now as he flopped onto his stomach.

"Wendy...!" Dipper cried out weakly, reaching toward her with a trembling hand, only to be zapped again. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH! 

"NMMM! NMMM!" Wendy screamed, her struggles immediately resuming. Wendy pulled at the ropes with everything she had, she started to feel one of her shoulders straining unnaturally but she continued to fight. She had to get free, she didn't care if her entire arm came off, she wasn't going to let Gideon hurt Dipper again. _"Dammit...! I won't...I refuse to let him do this to Dipper...! I have to get out of these fucking ropes...aaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!"_

The chair was lifting off of the ground from the force of Wendy's struggles, but Gideon didn't seem to notice or care, standing triumphantly over his defeated foe.

"I will ALWAYS defeat you, Dipper Pines!" Gideon taunted, laughing maniacally. "Do you hear me? Revenge is MINE!"

Dipper groaned and grunted in pain, trying desperately to stand.

"You're...nothing but...a pathetic coward...Gideon..." Dipper coughed, feeling pain in every part of his body. He looked up and saw Wendy, tears forming in her eyes as she continued to fight the ropes.

Wendy's tears weren't from the tickling but from despair over the thought of Dipper dying before her eyes and it being all her fault for getting herself caught and not being able to get free in time. She screamed as she saw Gideon viciously kick Dipper right in the crotch, taking the last ounce of fight out of him. Dipper was literally sobbing from the pain, a sight that ripped Wendy's heart in two.

"DMMMPPERRRRR!" Wendy screamed, fighting against the chair and the ropes with all her might, she managed to get her feet free and was now furiously kicking the air, but Gideon was safely out of distance of her legs, while the ropes around her wrists were starting to give way as well. The ropes holding her upper body to the chair, however, were much tighter, though even they were sliding tantalizingly looser with every bit of ferocity Wendy gave.

"I'm gonna kill you, Dipper Pines..." said Gideon, walking over to the desk and picking up a large dagger, then walking back over to Dipper who couldn't move even a finger now. He looked up at Wendy, trying desperately to stop the inevitable. "And then I'm gonna kill Wendy...and then I'll find your ungrateful twin sister and I'll kill her too..."

"Mabel...Mabel..." Dipper thought about Mabel, who he had no idea how she was faring and could only hope she was safe from the criminals upstairs. "Gideon...you bastard...!"

Dipper clenched his fists but there was nothing he could do. He took one more look up at Wendy.

"Wendy...I'm so sorry..."

"MMMMM!" Wendy cried, tugging mightily at the ropes, thrashing and screaming, every ounce of strength left in her body devoted to getting herself free. _"No...NO! There's not enough time...!"_

The ropes around Wendy's body were just too secure...if she had maybe a couple more minutes...but Dipper only had a couple more seconds.

"MMMM SMMMRRRY! DMMPERRRRRR! MMM SMMRRY MMM CMMLDNT SMMVE YMM!"

Wendy screamed what would be her last words to Dipper, words that only filled him with more agony.

"_Sorry...? Wendy...why are you sorry? I should have been the one to protect you..."_

Dipper closed his eyes, knowing the last thing he would ever feel would be Gideon's knife going into his back.

"I'll see you in Hell, Dipper Pines!" Gideon said with a triumphant laugh, plunging the knife down at Dipper.

The next thing Gideon felt was a harsh blow to the side of the head. Then blackness.

"GRAPPLING HOOK!" Mabel shouted, standing in the doorway with her grappling hook gun in hand. She'd just landed the perfect blow to the side of Gideon's head, knocking him out cold. Her cheerful exclamation immediately dampened when she saw Dipper lying in pain in the middle of the room. "Dipper!"

Mabel rushed over to him and gently turned him over, while Wendy breathed an immense sigh of relief, leaning her head back as tears of sudden joy streamed down her face.

"Mabel...?" said Dipper weakly, his sister's energetic voice returning some measure of energy to him. He sat up and felt Mabel's arms wrapped tightly around him. "Mabel...you saved our lives!"

"Yeah...I did didn't I?" Mabel replied, giving her brother a crushingly tight hug. "You don't have to say it..."

"You're awesome, Mabel," said Dipper, returning his sister's hug despite the tingling sensation still coursing through his arms. "But how did you stop those guys up there?"

"Oh, I had a little help from Grenda and Candy... they know how prison works."

O-O-O

Upstairs in the living room, Grenda was standing on the coffee table while Candy was up on her shoulders. Gideon's criminal friends were cowering before them.

"I'm the alpha dog!" Grenda shouted, raising her muscular arms high in the air.

"Keep cowering! Or I will cut you!" shouted Candy, giving her fiercest glare.

O-O-O

As soon as Dipper could stand, he rushed over to Wendy. He saw that she was free most of the way, but she'd stropped struggling after she knew he was safe, wanting to let her "hero" finish the job.

"Wendy...are you okay?" asked Dipper, gingerly removing the tape from her mouth.

"Yeah dude, of course!" Wendy replied with a smile. "Though...I do have to go to the bathroom pretty badly."

"Um...right," said Dipper, quickly untying the rest of the ropes around Wendy.

"I'll meet you guys outside, okay?" said Wendy, hastily rushing up the stairs. Dipper smiled and waved at her, then turned to Mabel.

"Mabel-"

"It was all you bro," she said, smiling and patting Dipper on the back. "From the looks of things, you kicked Gideon's butt way before I got here!"

"Yeah, but he still overpowered me..." replied Dipper with a sigh. "I turned my back on him for one second and mmphh!"

Mabel had plastered a strip of duct tape over Dipper's mouth and was now holding his wrists in front of him, a big smile on her face.

"You aren't allowed to talk until you stop doubting yourself! I can wait all night if I have to!"

"Mmmm! MMMPH!" Dipper tried to get his hands out of Mabel's grip but he was too weak from the stun gun zaps to resist. "Mmmm..."

"You promise you won't say anything else bad about yourself for a whole week?"

"Mmm?"

"Promise Dipper! I am not afraid to keep you taped up all week if I have to, I've taped you up plenty of times before!"

"..." Dipper sighed, his sister was right. He was safe, Mabel was safe, and Wendy was safe. They'd won. They'd beaten Gideon. It had been a closer call than most, but everything was going to be okay. "...mmmph."

Dipper smiled under the tape.

"Okay!" Mabel cried, ripping the tape off of Dipper's mouth.

"Ow! Mabel!"

"Awww, go upstairs and see Wendy, I'm gonna call the cops and then cover all those men criminal guys in glitter glue."

Dipper smiled at Mabel as he ran up the stairs.

"_Thanks Mabel...I owe you big time."_

O-O-O

Wendy was already outside by the time Dipper got there. She was sitting in a swing, facing the eastern sky. She saw Dipper coming and smiled at him, patting the seat next to her on the swing. He sat down, smiling and blushing.

"Dipper, you were awesome tonight... you totally saved me back there. You're my hero."

She'd just come right out and said it. The words made Dipper feel warm immediately...and itchy, of course. He reached up to scratch his arms, but started to look away from Wendy, feeling a pang of doubt returning despite the promise he'd made Mabel.

"But...Gideon got the better of me...and you were almost free when I showed up, so if I'd come a few minutes later-"

"Dude, who do you think made me actually try to get free?" asked Wendy, placing a hand on Dipper's shoulder. "I didn't start REALLY struggling until he threatened you. I mean...if anything, I should be the one feeling bummed right now. I've been training to do all this badass lumberjack stuff from birth and I got overpowered by a little kid."

"Well, him and his eight big ripped hardened criminal buddies."

"Yeah and I was totally gonna fight 'em too until the skinny one took my axe," said Wendy, clenching her fists and looking rather annoyed. "Being a damsel in distress is SO not my bag. ….but...I'm glad I got to be saved by you at least once."

"Really?" asked Dipper, his voice squeaking a bit. He coughed. "Um...really?"

"Yeah, seeing you beating on Gideon like that just to save me was pretty awesome. Think you could let me teach you some of my skills?"

"S...sure!" said Dipper enthusiastically, his face getting redder and redder. "Like climbing trees and then cutting down those same trees?"

"Hells yeah," Wendy replied, slapping Dipper on the back. "Dipper...I know you're still...in love with me. And it's cool. I just don't want to ever hurt you or make you feel...you know, awkward or itchy or anything like that."

Dipper kept blushing, and could see the warmth and caring in Wendy's eyes. He wanted to be with her but if it couldn't be romantically, he still felt safe and comfortable being with her. If it was as friends, it was still okay. They liked most of the same things, he loved talking to her about anything, and she knew exactly how to make him smile, or laugh, or just feel good inside.

"It's okay...I know that, with the whole...me being three years younger and everything that I don't really have a shot. You're still my best friend out here, and...considering how I'm not really popular in school or anything, you're kind of the best friend I've ever had anywhere. And I'm okay with that. I mean...yeah I'll always wish it was something more, unless I somehow meet some other girl who's even more spectacularly awesome than you, but I'm glad to have you as a friend and I wouldn't trade that for anything, Wendy."

Dipper placed his hand on hers and she held it softly.

"Dipper, you're pretty awesome."

The sun was beginning to rise, and the two of them turned to watch it together, Dipper leaning on Wendy as she just let him lean there, nuzzling his head against her shoulder.

"It's okay if you wanna fall asleep, dude. I don't mind carrying you home," said Wendy with a warm smile.

"But...you still...owe me breakfast..." said Dipper, yawning loudly.

"It'll be waiting when you wake up," Wendy replied. "I promise."

Dipper turned to Wendy and she wrapped him up in a tight hug, holding him closely to her. She could feel Dipper falling asleep in her arms as the police arrived to take Gideon and the criminals away. Mabel rushed out of the house, excitedly telling the police everything that had happened.

"Uhhh, I think we need to take the kidnap victim's statement," said Sheriff Blubs, pointing at Wendy.

"Can't you see she's clearly traumatized?" Mabel said excitedly, waving her arms. "Gideon subjected her to tortures beyond all imagination! You gotta let her recover! I can tell you everything! It was super amazing!"

"Well, I guess it'd be more exciting to hear it from you..." Sheriff Blubs said, scratching his forehead and looking over at his partner. "We could use the entertainment, right?"

"Uh, yeah, I think so!" said Deputy Durland, agreeing with his partner.

"All right then Mabel, tell us everything that happened," the sheriff continued, listening as Mabel told the two officers all the exciting things that had happened during their fierce battle with Gideon...embellishing practically everything, of course. As Mabel did that, Wendy picked up the sleeping Dipper, holding him in her arms and carrying him back down the road to the Mystery Shack.

It was a long walk, but despite her ordeal, Dipper didn't feel heavy in Wendy's arms at all. She lifted up his hat and gently kissed him on the forehead, so very grateful that he was safe.

"_I don't know if we'll ever be a couple like you want, Dipper...but no matter what happens between us, I know I don't ever wanna lose you."_

**END**


End file.
